Focused on playing fast, Quaker Valley hockey gets off to quick start

By: Ray Fisher
Sunday, October 13, 2024 | 11:01 AM

Purchase Photo Options

Purchase Photo Options

Purchase Photo Options

Purchase Photo Options

Purchase Photo Options

Purchase Photo Options

Purchase Photo Options

Previous Next

Skate fast and win fast. The Quaker Valley hockey team got off to a fast start to the 2024-25 PIHL season.

The Quakers defeated McDowell, 6-1, on Sept. 30 at Baierl Ice Complex.

“We played fast and hard,” QV coach Kevin Quinn said. “We ran into a hot goalie but broke through in the third. I liked our start. We are deep and expect to be very competitive.”

QV was more than competitive last season, racking up a 16-3-0-1 record and advancing to the PIHL playoffs. The Quakers started out 9-0 and were 15-1 late in the season.

Overall, QV held a 94-37 edge in goals scored and held nine teams to one goal or less, including five shutouts.

“We fell short in the quarterfinals last year and are as a group very hungry to win a Penguin Cup,” Quinn said. ”We return a lot: both goalies, our top scorers as well as some talented newcomers.”

Matthias Lezama, a freshman forward, collected a pair of goals and assists against McDowell in his first varsity game with the Quakers.

“Matthias got off to a great start,” Quinn said.

Max Modrovich, a junior forward, contributed a goal and three assists. Sophomore forward Charlie Pyle added a goal and two assists.

Ben McHenry, a junior forward, and Jacob Keisel, a junior defenseman, rounded out the QV attack with a goal apiece while senior goalkeeper Landon Buterbaugh stopped 19 of 20 shots.

Buterbaugh and defenseman Liam Welge are the only seniors on this year’s team.

“I have very high expectations for this team,” Welge said, “and we definitely need to work hard to reach our goals of having a good season. We have great strengths all around with our goalie and the defense supporting him. And our offense has many options to utilize.”

Welge is an alternate captain in 2024-25, and Keisel is the captain. Both are third-year varsity players.

“I think we should definitely shoot for winning the Pens Cup and even the state championship,” Keisel said. “It’s been our team’s dream ever since we started playing together in elementary school. With a strong senior goalie and depth in our lines, we’re ready to make a deep run.

“We have a strong defense and two very solid goalies. It’s difficult for teams to get through all three layers to get out of the zone. I think what really makes us a solid team is that we have been playing together since we were 8 years old, so we have great chemistry and bonding. We have a lot of trust in one another and our coaches.”

The junior class dominates a long list of returning players for QV with Keisel, Modrovich and McHenry joined by forwards Jace Vasbinder, Colin York, Charlie D’Antonio, Lance Shaner, Aidan Dillaman, Hunter Kronk, defensemen Luke Koehler, Tristan Bemis and goalkeeper Ian Lorang.

Sophomores Kieran Cain, Jack Watson and Pyle are back as well, while Lezama, forward Luca Kurumfasche and defenseman Michael Minnock are first-year varsity players, as is forward Isabel King.

Modrovich and Vasbinder led the team in scoring last season with 40 and 38 points. Modrovich finished with 19 goals and 21 assists; Vasbinder contributed 23 goals and 15 assists.

Buterbaugh was 11-3 with a 1.85 goals-against average, .930 save percentage and three shutouts. Lorang complemented him with a 5-1 record, 1.85 GAA, .898 save percentage and two shutouts.

Tags: Quaker Valley